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Adult insects may look quite different from their childhood appearance.
That is because insects go through a stage called metamorphosis.
Metamorphosis means change of body form, appearance, and, sometimes,
even diet. All insects undergo one of the two types of metamorphosis -
complete or incomplete.
Butterflies experience complete metamorphosis. After hatching from eggs,
caterpillars look very different from their beautiful butterfly parents!
Caterpillars always have a good appetite - they spend most of their time
chewing leaves. As they keep eating and growing, their skin becomes too
tight! So they shed their skin to reveal a new, soft one beneath with
space inside for growing. The process of shedding their skin is called
molting. Caterpillars molt several time until they grow to their full
size. Then, caterpillars produce a pupa, also called chrysalis, and seal
themselves inside. Inside the pupa the whole body is reorganized, and a
butterfly emerges. Ladybugs, bees, ants, flies, and moths all go through
complete metamorphosis. |
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